New Year’s Eve Must Haves

Happy Monday friends! I hope your Christmas was filled with happiness and pretty things! My Christmas was spent with my parents and sister at home. My mom made a delicious turkey for dinner and we indulged in a chocolate cake after. We opened presents in the morning and I got the cutest Lilly Pulitzer planner, Kate Spade mug, Lauren Conrad earrings, an adult coloring book (I love to color, it relaxes me!) and an assortment of other fun gifts! I was spoiled this year and I hope you were as well!

Since New Year’s Eve is this Friday I figured I’d write a little something about the must-haves for the big celebration. When I was about 7, my parents finally let me stay up until midnight for the big celebration on tv. When it hit midnight, we were sitting in our living room and I said “That’s it?” I was disappointed at the lack of excitement I expected there to be. Last year I spent New Year’s Eve in New York City, it was quite a bit more exciting!

This year, I’ll be spending it in San Antonio with my boyfriend! For those of you who plan on a more low-key celebration in your home, I have the perfect list of things for your event.

New Year’s Eve Party

Let’s start with a fabulous outfit! The more sparkly it is, the better you look! New Year’s Eve is the perfect event for you to sport a bedazzled skirt or dress. I’ve seen a great selection of dresses at Forever 21 and Target. If you’re going to wear something shiny on top, consider wearing a solid color shoe so it doesn’t compete with everything else.

Moving on to beverages, Marshall’s and TJ Maxx have the most adorable wine and champagne glasses for around $4 each! Most of them have sparkles or confetti adorning the exterior of the glass for a festive look. I recommend having a non-alcoholic drink option for those who don’t want to stumble around too much. Have a champagne bucket like the gold top hat pictured above to chill your bubbly before midnight.

Something a little different to do with the popular bar cart is to fill it with little hors d’oeuvres instead of drinks. Personally, I think it’s easier to have drinks at a kitchen island because of the mess it can make and the sheer amount of people trying to get to them.

Finally, festive decorations are always nice such as balloons like the ones featured above. Noise makers and confetti poppers are also a great touch to any New Year’s Eve celebration and can be found at most party stores.

Out of politeness and safety, have space already made up (blankets, pillows, air mattress) and ready to go in case any of your guests are, ahem, too tipsy to drive home. Obviously, the point in responsible drinking is to know when to stop and what you can handle, but some people just don’t know their limits. If you’re going to have alcohol at your party, it’s partly your responsibility that everyone stays safe after consuming it.

Leave a comment with your New Year’s Eve plans!

New Year’s Eve Excursion

Good morning friends! As I promised in yesterday’s post, I’d tell you about my New Year’s Eve excursion to New York City. I’m going to get this out of the way before I go any further- it was COLD. I’ve never been in pain from the cold but my muscles and face hurt like crazy from trying to stay warm. I’ve never experienced cold quite like this. Besides the temperature, it was a wonderful trip!

Getting to the city was a 5 hour bus trip from Washington, D.C. I left at 7:30am and we were in the city by 11:30am. The early afternoon was spent exploring Times Square and Central Park. At about 1pm people started seriously lining up in Times Square to watch the ball drop at midnight. Police officers told us that at 3pm the people in the blocked off areas near the square would start to be confined by “pens” in that area until midnight. The kicker was that if they got out of their “pen” then they couldn’t get back in and forfeited their spot. We met a few people who said they had stood in their confined area for 12 hours having only a few snacks and drinks. According to them, the family next to them all had diapers on in case they had to go to the bathroom. I guess some people really are crazy.

Central Park was a lovely walk and a much needed break from constant people. There were a few street performers that had me laughing with their jokes and stunts. Squirrels roamed the park and had quite the attitude when it came to food. I strolled through the park with some warm, sugar-roasted almonds that really hit the spot. My fingers were so cold that I had a hard time eating them!

After Central Park it was about 3pm so we went for a pizza at an Italian restaurant. The mozzarella was so fresh! The crust and the pizza sauce were excellent too. It was so nice to just sit there and take everything in while reflecting on events earlier in the day. When we left the restaurant, 5th avenue was conveniently located a short walk away. I headed straight for a legendary New York City store- TIffany’s! After watching Audrey Hepburn’s Breakfast at Tiffany’s I became obsessed with the store. Walking into the big, beautiful building almost scared me. My dreams were standing right in front of me and I wasn’t sure if they would live up to my expectations… but they did! We browsed through the store a bit and then met the elevator operator at the elevators and he took us up to the 2nd floor where engagement rings were located. Did I mention he was wearing a Tiffany blue tie? He looked amazing! Couples everywhere were sitting with consultants trying on rings and drinking champagne. I was in heaven. I also found on the 4th floor my favorite TIffany mug! Too bad it was in a set of 2 and $80.

After shopping up and down 5th avenue, we went to get a drink and cheers to the new year before heading out to the street to freeze with everyone else. While in a quaint bar and grill we met a few couples from South Africa who traveled to NYC for the new year. After sharing casual conversation with them we paid our bill and headed out into the cold where we were greeted by Taylor Swift’s voice coming from just down the street. Yes, I heard Miss Swift singing “Shake it Off”. I also got to hear “Rude” by Magic.

Waiting for the ball to drop seemed like a never ending event. Everyone was cold and tired. However, it was still one, big party for most people. The real magic happened when the countdown began. That unmistakable energy filled the air and gave meaning and purpose to our crazy idea of spending New Year’s Eve in Times Square. The funny part was after the clock struck midnight everyone bolted for the taxi cabs waiting down the street. We caught our bus at 1:30am near the docks. We quickly fell asleep upon leaving the city and slept most of the way home. 

As I write this I can assure you that my feet still hurt from walking and I detest the cold more than ever before. However, spending New Year’s Eve in New York was on my bucket list and the memories were worth every shiver.

Tell me about your New Year’s celebration in a comment below!

September 12 and My Trip to the World Trade Center Memorial

I’ve been thinking long and hard about what to write today. It’s not that I have lack of anything to write, but the words I would like to say just aren’t coming to me. As most of you remember, September 11, 2001 was an absolute tragedy for Americans across the nation, particularly for those in New York City, near the Pentagon, and in the small Pennsylvania town that saw a plane crash in a field. Hours of video footage shows the same thing- death, despair, destruction, and loss. Looking up at those burning buildings and knowing there isn’t a thing anyone can do to stop the inevitable is heart wrenching.

This is a photo from a 9/11 memorial that my friend and I hosted and planned at the local veteran’s home. It made Washington D.C. news. Each flag represents a person who died. We had 2,997 flags placed in the ground.

Fast forward to September 12. There’s still dust in the air, fires still burning, bodies still beneath the ruble. But something has changed in the atmosphere. America is alive with passion and pride. New York wakes up with determination and strength. Rescue workers and volunteers gather at Ground Zero to begin recovery. Former President Bush delivers a speech using only a bull horn. For once we aren’t political party members, we are people united by our national pride. Looking to the sky saying our prayers and looking to our flag pledging our allegiance. Slowly, we begin the long process of healing and rebuilding. That day sets a precedent for the next few years.

I look back on that day every year and it brings tears to my eyes. It’s like the D-Day of our generation. A tragedy we won’t forget. The crazy thing is our children don’t and won’t remember. It’s just a day in history for them. With my own kids, I’m not going to let them forget because when we forget we become vulnerable.

A few years ago I was able to visit the World Trade Center memorial site. What an absolutely humbling experience to walk on such hallowed ground. You don’t realize how big these buildings were until you see the basement-turned-memorial for each tower. More importantly, you don’t understand the loss of life until you see every name etched into the stone surrounding the memorial. My only complaint about the site was that the American flag wasn’t bigger.

South Tower memorial

Old cemetery across the street that saw the towers fall

After visiting this beautiful site and reliving every moment of that day, I can honestly say there’s no other place I’d rather call home than here in my America. And this pride electrifies me every time I walk on such hallowed ground.

Before I close, I have to ask: Where were you September 11? Comment below.